‘It was brutal’: Hawaii man, 68, fends off 12-foot tiger shark with diving knife after it ‘ripped off a good chunk of his buttock’
- An unidentified man, 68, of Waikoloa, Hawaii, was bitten by a 12-foot tiger shark around 8.15am on Tuesday while swimming off the coast of Anaehoomalu Bay
- He was able to fend off the animal using a diving knife before an unidentified woman and a man named Kai jumped on paddleboards and helped pull him out
- Witness, Anthony Singh, said the man’s fingers had ‘razor-like cuts’ from trying to get away from the shark
- Singh also said the shark ripped a ‘good chunk’ of the victim’s left side ‘rear’
A Hawaii man fended off a shark using a diving knife after it bit him on the backside and ripped off a ‘good chunk.’
The unidentified man, 68, of Waikoloa, was bitten by a 12-foot tiger shark around 8.15am on Tuesday while swimming off the coast of Anaehoomalu Bay.
Witnesses said the man, who swam daily at the beach, was around 400 yards out when the shark attacked him.
He was able to fend off the animal using a diving knife before an unidentified woman and a man named Kai jumped on paddleboards and helped pull him out of the water and onto the shore.
‘It was heretic, it was brutal,’ witness Anthony Singh told Hawaii News Now. ‘It was shocking to see that he was able to get up and lay on the beach himself because a good chunk of him on the left side was just out from his rear.’
An unidentified man, 68, of Waikoloa, (pictured laying down) was bitten by a 12-foot tiger shark around 8.15am on Tuesday while swimming off the coast of Anaehoomalu Bay. Witnesses said the man was around 400 yards out when the shark attacked him
He was able to fend off the animal using a diving knife before an unidentified woman (right) and a man named Kai (left) jumped on paddleboards and helped pull him out of the water and onto the shore
Singh also told KITV that the man’s fingers had ‘razor-like cuts’ from trying to get away from the shark.
‘The guy said he couldn’t really feel anything because he was in shock. He didn’t even notice how much of his meat got bitten off,’ he told KITV.
Kat Haber, who was visiting her son McKenzy on the island, recalled hearing a ‘sudden’ scream and a man calling out: ‘Help, help!’
When she looked up, she saw a ‘bobbing head’ behind a catamaran – a type of boat – she revealed in a Facebook post.
McKenzy said there was ‘no hesitation’ from the two rescuers, who just ‘got on their paddleboards and started heading right out.’
McKenzy, who owns Hawaii Beach Fishing, also said he had noticed bait balls – large schools of fish used to attract sharks – at the Bay recently and that tiger sharks can be ‘more aggressive than a great white at times.’
‘A 12-foot tiger shark is a lot different than a reef shark. That is pretty much our apex predator,’ he told KHON 2.
The victim was transported to the Queens North Hawaii Community Hospital in serious condition, which has since been updated to stable.
He is expected to survive the attack and will be transferred to Oahu for treatment, Hawaii News Now reported.
The man swam daily at the bay (pictured) and was transported to the Queens North Hawaii Community Hospital in serious condition, which has since been updated to stable. He is expected to survive the attack and will be transferred to Oahu for treatment
Witness Anthony Singh (left) said he was ‘shocked’ the man was able to lay down on the beach after the ‘brutal’ attack. Another witness, McKenzy Haber (right), said he had seen bait balls – large schools of fish used to attract predators – in the area recently
After the attack, beachgoers were advised to stay out of the water and Ocean Safety crews surveyed the area via helicopters.
This is the second shark attack in the state this week.
A 60-year-old woman from Washington state disappeared while snorkeling with her husband around Keawakapu Point in South Maui on December 8.
Witnesses said she was attacked by a shark. Officials called off the search for her on Friday, after they were unable to find her body.
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